King Edward VI Grammar School Chelmsford

Notable Alumni

OF THE CHELMSFORD CHANTRY SCHOOL (BEFORE THE ROYAL CHARTER OF 1551)

  • John Dee – Noted mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, occultist, and consultant to Queen Elizabeth I; responsible for the English translation of Euclid’s work.

PRE 1900

  • John Hilton, FRS, (1805-1878) – President of the Royal College of Surgeons
  • Philemon Holland – Celebrated classical scholar
  • Thomas Plume – Archdeacon of Rochester and educational benefactor, founded the chair of Plumian Professor of Astronomy and Experimental Philosophy at the University of Cambridge 
  • Joseph Strutt – Author of ‘Sports and Pastimes of the People of England’
  • The Rt Hon Sir Nicholas Conyngham Tindal –  Lord Chief Justice of The Court of Common Pleas, distinguished 19th century judge 

POST 1900

  • Harold Henry Abbott – Poet
  • John Aldridge – Chairman of Essex County Council (2016-18)
  • Nick Alston CBE– Essex’s first Police & Crime Commissioner.  Deputy Lieutenant for Essex.  High Sheriff of Essex.
  • Chris Auchinvole – Member of the New Zealand Parliament 
  • John Alec Baker – Writer, best known work, ‘The Peregrine’, winner of the Duff Cooper Memorial Prize 
  • Sir John Hamilton Baker QC LLD FBA FRHistS – English legal historian who was Downing Professor of the Laws of England at the University of Cambridge from 1998-2011
  • Peter Baldwin CBE – Chief Executive of the Radio Authority from 1991-95
  • Oliver Bearman – Formula 1 racing driver and member of the Haas team. Youngest ever British driver to drive in full F1 grand prix (Saudi Arabian GP for Ferrari)
  • Rodney Bass OBE (1946-2020) – Chairman of Essex County Council (2010-12)
  • Mike Baxendale – War correspondent, published author and publisher 
  • Jonty Bloom – former BBC Business & Europe Correspondent
  • Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth – former Leader of the Welsh Conservative Party, former MP and Member of the House of Lords
  • Tim Carey – Internationally renowned pianist, solo performer, chamber-music player, orchestral keyboard player and teacher
  • Professor Jonathan Clayden FRS– (KEGS 1979-1986) – Professor of Chemistry at University of Bristol; Fellow of the Royal Society, winner of Royal Society of Chemistry’s Meldola, Corday-Morgan & Tilden prizes; textbook author. 
  • Neil Cole – Comedian, actor, television presenter and radio broadcaster 
  • Dr Bruce Choppin – B.H.L.Choppin, 1940-1983: B.A (Cantab), PhD (University of Chicago) – pioneering educational theorist, one-time Principal Research Officer at the National Foundation for Educational Research 
  • Mervyn Day – Former professional footballer (West Ham United) 
  • Eamonn Dolan – Former professional footballer (West Ham United & Tottenham) and football coach (Reading)
  • Paul Dorrington – Guitarist with Indie pop legends The Wedding Present from 1991-1995. The band broke Elvis Presley’s record for the most hit singles in the UK charts in one year (1992) 
  • Alex Dowsett – Professional cyclist, Commonwealth Gold Medalist and member of the Team Katusha-Alpecin cycling team.  In 2015, he broke track cycling’s world hour record by 446 metres (1,463 feet), with a distance of 52.937 kilometres (32.894 miles).
  • Alice Fevronia (Alice McFarlane when at KEGS) – Great British Bake Off Finalist in 2019
  • Lord Fowler – Lord Speaker to the House of Lords. Conservative politician; former Cabinet minister
  • Harold Gainsford Dryhurst (1923-67) Notable WW2 Bomber Command pilot and post war flight instructor at RAF Cranwell
  • Mark Gayler – Liberal Democrat councillor 
  • Guthrie Govan – Guitarist and writer for Guitar Techniques magazine
  • Jason Hazeley (Jason Smith when at KEGS), Robin Halstead, Joel Morris, Alex Morris, creators of the Framley Examiner, spoof local newspaper Bollocks to Alton Towers; Uncommonly British Days Out.  Jason Hazeley and Joel Morris are also the creators of the bestselling spoof Ladybird books which includes How It Works – The Wife, How It Works – The Husband, The Ladybird Book of the Midlife Crisis and The Ladybird Book of the Hipster
  • Simon Heffer – Journalist, author and Daily Telegraph columnist 
  • Thomas Jenkinson – AKA Squarepusher. Prominent electronic musician, record producer, bassist and DJ 
  • Peter D Joslin QPM BA CIMgt   – Chief  Constable of Warwickshire (1983 – 1998)
  • Professor Donald Kelly – Professor of Veterinary Pathology, University of Liverpool; Foundation President of the European College of Veterinary Pathologists; Honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons
  • Bart Lambert – Award-winning stage and screen actor
  • Jonathan Lewis – Former Essex County Cricketer and captain of Durham County Cricket Club 2000- 2005
  • Doug McCallum – Founder, Global Radio and Internet pioneer
  • Andrew McGarry – former Essex cricketer 
  • James Maynard – Mathematician.  Oxford professor. Winner of the 2022 Fields Medal and 2014 Ramanujan Prize
  • Anthony Marwood – Internationally renowned concert violinist
  • Tim Mead – Counter-Tenor
  • Anthony Milton OBE – Commandant General Royal Marines and Commander UK Amphibious Forces from 2002-4
  • Dave Monk – Presenter, BBC Essex 
  • Robert James O’Neill – British Ambassador to Austria 
  • Martin Outram – Fellow of the Royal Academy of Music, (where he has been a professor since 1984) and viola player in the award-winning Maggini Quartet
  • Spencer Owen – YouTube personality and founder of Hashtag United football club
  • Chris Parker KC – King’s Counsel. Partner at Herbert Smith Freehills specialising in international arbitration.
  • Brian Parkyn – Labour MP for Bedford from 1966-70
  • Noel ‘Peter’ Paynter – (1898-1998) Chief Intelligence Officer of HQ Bomber Command (1942-47), Director of MI5 (1947-1960), Companion of the Order of the Bath
  • Sir Grayson Perry – Artist, broadcaster, and winner of the 2003 Turner Prize
  • Brin Pirathapan – Winner of BBC MasterChef 2024
  • Dr Kevin Privett – Geologist. Winner of the prestigious Glossop Medal awarded by the Geological Society for a significant contribution to engineering geology
  • Ross Ramgobin – Operatic Baritone on stage and screen
  • Dr Simon Reid-Henry – Writer, prize-winning historical & political geographer.  Research Fellow at Queen Mary University of London, Senior Researcher at the Peace Institute, Oslo
  • Peter Seabrook MBE – (1935-2022) – Gardening expert & horticulturist.  Prolific national broadcaster & columnist.
  • Wilf Sizer – Wing Commander who served as fighter pilot during four major campaigns – Withdrawal from Dunkirk, The Battle of Britain, The North West African Campaign and the Invasion of Sicily. 1920 – 2007 
  • Dr Chris Smith – Author of The Naked Scientist, consultant virologist, national & international broadcaster & Cambridge University lecturer. Covid-19 expert and regular contributor to BBC Breakfast.
  • Mike Smith – (1955-2014) Former Radio 1 DJ, touring car driver and television presenter.  He founded ‘Flying TV’ in 2004, a company which provides aerial filming services to broadcasters   
  • Ray Smith – Essex County cricketer 1934-56
  • Professor Ralph C Smith OBE – first ever Professor of Mathematics of the Open University, internationally renowned pioneer of television teaching, consultant to education authorities in many countries including lengthy residences in China and USA 
  • Nicholas Sommerlad – Journalist and former husband of Sinéad O’Connor
  • Jon Swaine – US based journalist, working for the Washington Post and previously the Guardian and the Telegraph
  • Prof John G Taylor (1931-2012) – Professor of Mathematics at King’s College, London
  • Joe Thomas – Actor, played Simon in The Inbetweeners, Kingsley in Fresh Meat and Martin Lavender in White Gold
  • John Tipler – International motoring journalist
  • Michael Tsim – BAFTA winner (for ‘Titles & Graphic Identity’ in 2022) for his work for the BBC on titles for Tokyo Olympics.  Multi award winning TV graphic designer.
  • John Watson – (fictional) character in the BBC series of Sherlock. John Watson’s CV is visible in episode 2, where KEGS is cited under Education Qualifications
  • Tim Wayne-Wright – Singer with Grammy award-winning a cappella group, The King’s Singers
  • Dr Michael Weston – Eminent Consultant Renal Physician.  Dr Weston was instrumental in the building of a renal dialysis unit at Broomfield Hosptial, and developing local renal services..  He spearheaded the fundraising for the unit, which was opened by Prime Minister John Major in the early 1990s.  Since then, patients needing renal dialysis are treated in Broomfield and no long have to travel to London for the service and local services have continued to develop.
  • Denis Wick – Britain’s most influential orchestral trombonist of the 20th century
  • Rt Revd Clive Young – The Bishop of Dunwich
  • Alan Stacey – Drove for team Lotus in the F1 during 1959 to 1960 (KEGS 1940s)

If there is anyone we have missed please let us know

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